Today I’m thrilled to be part of the Bloodhound Christmas Crackers blog tour, and I’m re-sharing my review of one of my favourite crimes series Those That Remain by Rob Ashman is the first book in the “Mechanic” series. If you like a crime series that’s dark and you’re not put off by gruesome scenes then look no further. The series would make the perfect Christmas too 🎄📚You can read on for my thoughts…..
The heat of the Florida summer is relentless. Lucas is coasting to retirement in a mundane Florida police precinct. His world falls apart when a brutal serial killer codenamed Mechanic lands on his patch.
Three years ago they thought Mechanic was dead. But Mechanic is very much alive and the savage ritualistic murders continue. No family is safe from the threat of slaughter at this sadistic killer’s hands.
Mechanic is always one step ahead and Lucas is forced to operate outside the law.
Who can he trust?
The shocking truth is more terrifying than Lucas could ever imagine … and he has to put his life on the line to get it.
I think I have just found myself a new crime thriller author and series that will be going straight on my “must read authors list”. What a gripping book Those That Remain turned out to be. I do love American based crime thrillers they always seem so much darker and twisted. To say I loved this novel is an understatement it’s probably one of the best debut crime thrillers I’ve read in fact. Rob Ashman’s superb writing drew me in from the first chapter and I’m sure I spent much of my time reading this book in stunned silence (not a mean feat, I can tell you!).
I’m a sucker for a well depicted serial killer and the Mechanic certainly fits the bill. Oh my goodness what a character the author has created one of the most intriguing serial killers I’ve read about in a long time, they are one twisted individual and to their motives for the killings, I couldn’t help having a smidgen of sympathy for them. The Chapters from the killer give you insight to this very troubled and damaged character, from these chapters I felt like I was in the Killers head looking into the darkest and most troubled corners of the human mind which made for a blood chilling read and a couple of restless nights sleep. The crimes committed are gruesome but in the authors defence these scenes never felt gratuitous within the context of the story
Those that Remain has so many great characters I especially liked Lucas’s he’s not you typical stereotype detective for a start he’s counting down the days to retirement, so I found his character a refreshing change from the “kick ass” Detectives that are the norm in many a crime thriller. I’m not going to go into plot details as I would hate to give away spoilers, but what I will say is this crime thriller certainly made for a gripping and unpredictable read that will chill you to the bones. In my opinion it’s one of those books you just don’t want to put down as each chapter leaves you desperately wanting more, it moves along at a fast pace with so many twist and turns my head was spinning.
There were so many elements that made this book an exciting read, unique characters, an intricate plot, and a dash of dark humour. I was extremely intrigued by the profiling side of things, who knew there were so many different types of serial killers? I have one question for the author “why, oh why did it take you so darn long to get published?” I just love it when a book leaves you wanting more. If you are looking for a new crime thriller to read then look no further than Those That Remain I promise you won’t be disappointed. I’ve read the whole series now and it’s a “must” read for anyone who loves a cracking crime thriller. Highly recommended.
Buying links: Amazon UK 🇬🇧 Amazon US 🇺🇸
Print Length: 303 pages
Publisher: Bloodhound Books (22 Jun. 2017)
Other Books in the series
You can find my reviews for these books here…
Pay The Penance by Rob Ashman #BookReview @RobAshmanAuthor @Bloodhoundbook
Those That Remain by Rob Ashman #BookReview @RobAshmanAuthor @bloodhoundbook
Rob is married to Karen with two grown up daughters. He is originally from South Wales and after moving around with work settled in North Lincolnshire where he’s spent the last twenty-two years.
Like all good welsh valley boys Rob worked for the National Coal Board after leaving school at sixteen and went to University at the tender age of twenty-three when the pit closures began to bite. Since then he’s worked in a variety of manufacturing and consulting roles both in the UK and abroad.
It took Rob twenty-four years to write his first book. He only became serious about writing it when his dad got cancer. It was an aggressive illness and Rob gave up work for three months to look after him and his mum. Writing Those That Remain became his coping mechanism. After he wrote the book his family encouraged him to continue, so not being one for half measures, Rob got himself made redundant, went self-employed so he could devote more time to writing and four years later the Mechanic Trilogy is the result.
Rob has published Those That Remain, In Your Name and Pay the Penance with Bloodhound Books and has since written Faceless, This Little Piggy and Suspended Retribution which will also be published by Bloodhound.
When he is not writing, Rob is a frustrated chef with a liking for beer and prosecco, and is known for occasional outbreaks of dancing.
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The book review café 